THINK TOGETHER
Do you ever feel like you have to be right about everything?
READ TOGETHER
Back in Bible times people worshipped statues called idols. They built huge temples and put the idols in the center, animals would be offered as sacrifices to these idols, and then the meat from these animals would be sold in the market place (like our grocery stores). Some of the Christians in Corinth understood that idols aren’t real and so they would eat the meat that had been sacrificed to idols. But other Christians thought eating the meat was the same as worshipping the idol.
But here’s the real problem: These two groups of Christians weren’t very kind to each other. Especially the Christians who would eat the meat. They claimed that they were smarter, and had more knowledge, and were more spiritual than the other non-meat eating Christians. So here’s what Paul said to them:
1 Corinthians 8:1. Now concerning food offered to idols: we know that “all of us possess knowledge.” This “knowledge” puffs up, but love builds up.
Paul is reminding them (and us) that love is the most important thing. Not knowledge, or being smarter. Not winning arguments or even knowing your Bible better than others. Knowing things is fine, but if knowing things makes you proud and selfish and less loving, then you have a real problem.
We live in a world where people just want to prove that they are smarter than everyone else. As you grow up it may get more and more tempting to love less and argue more. But Jesus wants us to always put knowledge and love together. As Paul says knowledge puffs up. That means it just makes you proud. But “love builds up.” That means that love will always do what is best for others.”
The cross of Jesus was where knowledge and love met. On the cross we get all the knowledge about God that we need. We know his holiness, his goodness, his kindness, and his grace all from the cross. And at the cross we see the greatest love ever. A love so pure and free that it would die for its enemies.
Because of Jesus we are known and loved by God.
With Jesus we can love more and argue less.
DO SOMETHING TOGETHER
Listen to Child of Love by We The Kingdom together.
PRAY TOGETHER
Jesus, help me to not have to be right about everything, and instead to love others and learn from them. Amen.
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